This invention relates to medical apparatus and particularly to apparatus for carrying pills as well as containers for a volume of liquid sufficient to enable a user to consume a pill.
In some cases it is of great urgency that a specific pill be taken. For example, some heart patients may experience chest pains and should take pills, such as aspirin, very promptly as recommended by their physician. In some cases, any delay may be fatal. In other cases, people have a complex schedule of multiple pill dosages throughout each day. A problem encountered by such users is to not only have the pills available when they are required, but also to not have a sufficient quantity of liquid readily available to allow them to consume the pills. A sufficient quantity of liquid is particularly imperative with some large pills and particularly imperative for some individuals who can not easily swallow or chew pills even under emergency conditions.
There are known collapsible cups and separate pill storage containers of various types known in the prior art. Such apparatus have not been wholly satisfactory.
An object of the invention is to provide apparatus, which in a single flask, will hold both a supply of pills and a supply of a liquid suitable for consuming the pills.
Another object of the invention is to provide such a flask that is easy to graspxe2x80x94particularly by persons that may be handicapped such as those having arthritis or other limitations on their ability to manipulate such a container.
Still another object of the invention is to provide a flask that enables a person, including even a handicapped person, to readily open and close the flask.
Still another object of the invention is to provide a construction which enables the user to easily grasp the flask and that is shaped to accommodate two of the user""s fingers.
It is now been found that these and other objects of the invention may be attained in a combination receptacle apparatus for carrying a quantity of liquid and a quantity of pills which includes a housing having a neck that receives a removable pill chamber. The pill chamber has an opening and is configured upon insertions into the housing to be fluid impervious. The housing further defines a primary chamber that is accessible when the pill chamber is removed. The flask selectively prevents liquid passage out of said second chamber and selectively prevents liquid passage into the first chamber. The housing is generally cross-shaped and the cross-shaped housing includes four generally elliptical sections of which first and second generally elliptical sections are generally coaxial and second and third elliptical sections are also generally coaxial.
The pill chamber is receivable within said first elliptical section. The primary chamber includes substantially all of said second, third and fourth elliptical sections. The structure for selectively preventing liquid passing into said pill chamber may include a cap dimensioned and configured for engaging the opening in the pill chamber. The structure for selectively preventing liquid passing out of the primary chamber may include the received pill chamber and its sealing interface with the housing and the cap.
The axial extremities of the caps may have parts thereof that are shaped whereby the housing is capable of standing upright on a flat horizontal surface.
The third and fourth elliptical sections may have axial extremities that include a dish-shaped end recess and each of the recesses is dimensioned and configured to accommodate a finger of a user. The housing exterior may be configured for engagement with an associated key ring and/or a lace that allows the flask to be worn around the user""s neck or mounted to other objects.